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Poroshenko’s confusing bank raises questions and faces NBU scrutiny

That a major commercial bank here in Ukraine would choose to locate most of its ATMs throughout Roshen confectionery shops and factories might seem strange, but for International Investment Bank, or IIB – 60 percent owned by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko – that’s where the confusion begins.

On its website, IIB says they provide a range of commercial banking services to private and business clients. They list 24 ATMs across the country, mostly in Kyiv-located Roshen chocolate shops (and one, strangely, at a Poroshenko-owned shipbuilding center).

But locating IIB customers, clients or anybody who knows much about the bank is a difficult task. Investment bankers in Kyiv say they don’t have any dealings with the bank and don’t seem sure what it’s for.

One senior investment banker who asked not to be named because he’s not authorized to speak with the press, simply said “this is the president’s bank” and didn’t elaborate.